The Edge of a Knife
by Quiet Harmony-chan
Summary: Fate always stands on the edge of a knife, whether the world will end in darkness or light. Discontent on the mainland has caused a lowly noble to send his daughter to destroy Lazulis Island, but the Gurak had beat her to it.


The salty smell of the sea swirled around the massive city, it combined with the excited sound of people talking and the strange crystals that floated through the air, making a foreign atmosphere for the young noble. Her large green eyes took in the sight from the ship that she had chartered only two weeks before, barely managing to making it in time for Lady Calista's wedding.

"Lady Rosina," a sailor said. "we'll be docking now."

The woman gave a small nod of her head, her dark red hair brushing her small nose. "I suppose I ought to go below deck and gather my things."

She walked past the rugged sailor, her body moving in time with the tipsy movements of the ship. Rosina didn't look like the average noble girl to most of the sailors on board _The Sea's Gift_. She wasn't very tall and had a bit of muscle to her, her dress wasn't made of silk, but a dull blue cotton. Long rose red hair was tied up into a braid then wrapped into a bun at the back of her head.

But the thing that screamed her lack of lineage was her eyes. A dark green that stared at everyone with poorly concealed suspicion. She was of House Morian, a house that had managed to become nobility through sheer cunning and treachery. Her great-grandfather only managed to become a noble through a murder and a life as little more than a war lord. It had become tradition for her family to be ruthless and demand respect, and this young woman,barley making twenty-two, demanded it just as her father did only two years ago.

She went into a small cabin that was considerably darker than the deck. Her large eyes blinked repeatedly as she tried to get the dots out of her vision.

"Ya look almost like a blind owl doin' all that."

Rosina's eyebrows clenched together as she struggled to see Alvery. From the direction of her voice she could tell that the older woman as lounging on the small bed that the two of them had shared. More than likely her precious gladiator sword was unsheathed, being stared at by its skilled owner.

"We're at port," A sigh of relief escaped her lips as she gained her vision back. "I told a sailor that we'd be collecting our things."

"Safe call."

Alvery swung her legs off the bed, her sword being sheathed on her left hip. She grabbed a water splattered bag made of dark leather and swung it onto her shoulder. Rosina also grabbed one and the two of them made their way back onto the sun dappled deck. They swiftly moved through the hustle and bustle that made up the many sailors and guests that crowded the ship until they made it to the rickety, wooden plank that was set carefully onto the wooden dock.

Lazulis Port.

It was the grand gem of The Empire. A city made completely of lovely white and grey stone it was a safe haven from the decay and war that was crippling the main land. Here you could see children running about with dogs, women chatting to each other next to a pot filled with soap and steaming hot water, and men hauling heavy wooden crates.

"Lady Rosina!"

Alvery gripped the hilt of her sword as her mistress turned around to come face to face with a lively young woman wearing a soft, rose pink, silken dress. "Rosina it's been ages!" The woman cooed.

"Likewise, Fluerette."

Flurette tilted her head to the side. "So you managed to get invited to the wedding?"

"Of course, Lady Calista's wedding is the greatest event of the year. Not only that but she's marrying Jirall, he's rather close to The Empire's throne."

"You do know your facts, no offense, but you always remind me of a common women with the way you dress and act."

Rosina's eyes visibly hardened. "Yes, well not all of us were greatly endowed with luxury. My father's estate is constantly being ravaged by other families, I must stay on my toes as a military leader as well as a woman of nobility."

"Ah, such poetic words!" Flurette put a small, smooth hand over Rosina's small heavily callused one. "I truly hope to see you soon."

With that the women walked off, just to bump into another woman with fiery orange hair, two swords attached to her hip. "Oi! Watch it!"

Flurette dusted her dress off. "If anyone should be asking to 'watch it' it ought to be you, mercenary."

"You pompus-"

A man with dark hair and feathers laced in it grabbed the woman's shoulder. "Calm down Syrenne and apologize."

"I'm not aplogizing to this stupid girl, Dagran. She bumped into me, probably too busy staring into her own reflection."

A crowd had by now began to circle around the combatants. Some whispered on the side of the mercenary, cursing the uppity nobles that strutted around Lazulis. While other's favored the noble, they didn't like her kind, but they saw mercenaries as little more than leeches of war.

"This isn't going to end well." Alvery muttered.

Rosina sighed and ran a hand through her bangs. "I'm tempted to leave the idiot to her fate."

"But then you would have one less ally in the great game of lies."

Rosina rolled her eyes and began pushing her way through the crowd to get into the middle. There stood three other mercenaries behind the one called Syrenne. Flurette stood opposite the fuming woman, a smirk etched on her delicate features.

"Rosina,this is the horrors of the city." Flurette pointed at Syrenne. "Incompetence and rudness beyond belief."

"Incompetence? I'll take that stick out of your ass."

Rosina dug a hand into her pocket, taking out two hundred gold pieces. "I deeply apologize for any misunderstanding Ms. Syrenne. You must understand that Mrs. Flurette's upbringing has left her rather proud."

The woman glanced down at the money for several seconds before slapping her hand away. "No amount of money'll get me to stand down."

"I wasn't trying to bribe you, if anything you'll need this to get out of jail."

As she spoke a guard pushed through the crowd, his sword drawn and ready to batter anyone in his way. Syrenne stared at it, then back at Dagran before snatching the money. "I'm not apologizing, but is she does it again..."

"Thank you."

A murmur of discontent buzzed through the crowd as it slowly disappeared, taking the now satisfied Flurette with it. "Well that's one crisis averted." A quiet looking blonde muttered.

"There wouldn't have been one if Syrenne acted like a human being." An eye-patch wearing young man said.

"Shut up, Yurick." Syrenne snapped. "Now wait a minute, you two aren't leaving yet are you?"

Rosina stopped, grabbing Alvery, who had blatantly ignored her. "We have no further business with you."

"Well I've got business with you." She put her hands on her waist. "You were actually nice to us."

"Was that a problem?"

"That not exactly normal," Yurick pointed out. "with us being mercenaries and all."

"Next time I suppose I'll leave you all to your fate." She turned around. "Now if you excuse me I have an important appointment."

The two of them went down the crowded port, the sound of children's screeching, waves roaring, and the occasional trilling of birds signaling the beginning of another game.

The game of survival.

**...**

**A/N: Here we are. I want you all to know that I've beat this game twice and working on it a third time. **

**Anyway I'm so freaking excited about writing this, I've wanted to write for this fandom for a while, but didn't know what story to do until I began reading my history book. Apparently even war lords could become nobles if they did something special for the king making a vassal system. In Rosina's case she's very low on the vassal system and isn't as 'cultured' as most of the other nobles. You'll see much more of this as the story goes on.**

**Anyway I hope you enjoy!**


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